The Blues Band, "The Big Blues Band Live Album"(Repertoire)- The engaging outfit formed by one time Manfred Mann frontman Paul Jones in the late seventies have always been at their muscular best in a live setting, and this newly released 2 CD set captures one of their classic shows from long ago in 1991. Singer and harmonica ace Jones and his talented cohorts regaled their audience at North London's Town & Country Club with an invigorating set featuring a fine blend of self penned material and energised revamps of songs associated with giants of the blues genre such as Muddy Waters, Elmore James and Sleepy John Estes. Slide guitarist Dave Kelly and guest pianist Bob Hall also deserve a mention in dispatches for their sparkling contributions to the proceedings.

Bella Hardy, "Hey Sammy" (Noe Records)- Bella Hardy's globetrotting exploits have seen the Derbyshire born folkie temporarily relocate to locations as diverse as Nashville and the Chinese province of Yunnan in recent years, and the invaluable experiences that she's gained along the way have certainly informed the lyrical and musical content of this, her ninth solo album. "Hey Sammy" continues Bella's rewarding collaboration with Scottish jazz pianist Tom Gibbs , and this deliciously eclectic affair must rank as her most inventive and wide ranging offering to date, showcasing melodic gems such as "Redemption" and "In My Dreams" in the process.

Stray, "Fire & Glass" (Esoteric/Cherry Red)- Stray's mystifying lack of commercial success prompted this tuneful hard rock outfit to make the move from Transatlantic to Pye Records in the mid seventies in the hope of reigniting their faltering career, and this excellent anthology brings together all the recordings that they made for their new label during this period. Fame and fortune sadly never came their way despite the sterling efforts of demon guitarist Del Bromham and his talented cohorts but they were able to bequeath a fine body of work to posterity before finally disbanding in 1977, and "Down and Down," "For The People" and "Take It Easy" capture the essence of Stray's eclectic appeal. Climax Blues Band, "Live at the BBC 1970-1978" (Repertoire)-This celebration of the distinctive blues rock sound created by Stafford's finest musical exports serves up 29 assorted tracks culled from the BBC archives, including their surprise 1976 hit, "Couldn't Get It Right" and affectionate covers of much loved oldies such as Jimmy Reed's "Goin' To New York" and Willie Dixon's classic "Spoonful." The fluent interplay between slide guitarist Pete Haycock and sax player Colin Cooper was always one of the most attractive features of the group's sound and their sterling contributions to this 2CD set should help to make it essential listening for Climax Blues Band devotees everywhere.